680,000 volunteers pitch in for Clean Up Australia Day

This year more than 680,000 volunteers across 6,834 sites removed an estimated 15 thousand tonnes of rubbish from their favourite parks, beaches, bushland, suburban streets and waterways across the nation.

Pip Kiernan has taken up the reigns since her famous dad’s passing: “It’s amazing to see so many people are as passionate about looking after the environment as Dad was; I am confident that together we can continue to grow Clean Up Australia Day well into the future,” she said as the 30 year anniversary of the event landed this month.

“Twenty years ago, Australians created just over 460kg of rubbish per person per year. Today it is more than 2,700kg, starting from the day we are born. Making a real difference starts with looking more closely at our personal purchasing behaviour, becoming conscious of the single use products, packaging and plastics that we buy and then discard."

Clean Up Australia is more than just about picking up rubbish. The charity works with community, businesses and governments to implement more sustainable waste management systems and legislation.

“We will continue to work with our amazing team of volunteers towards the implementation of better environmental practices and waste management legislation. We have seen container deposit legislation adopted by most of the country and a positive movement towards reducing single use plastic bags, but there is still lots of work to do."

Since the national event started in 1990 17.7 million Australians have donated more than 35 million hours towards caring for the environment, by removing the equivalent of 365 thousand ute loads of rubbish from more than 185 thousand registered sites across the country.

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